ChoiceStream Crunches Ad Targeting

The platform, which rolls out Monday, integrates predictive data to determine intent, how consumers react to ad messages and behavioral data to locate potential customers regardless of their online destination.

It integrates propriety data, along with third-party data from AlmondNet Data Division and eXelate to help find "undiscovered" audiences -- those the brand has not identified as having the potential to become customers.

Crunch identifies "on the fly" the type of consumer most likely to respond to the ad. Data continually changes during the campaign as outside influences, such as weather or cultural events, influence consumers, explains Lori Trahan, chief revenue officer at ChoiceStream.

"An army of media buyers couldn't possibly keep up with the changes to adjust campaigns," she said. Crunch automatically takes these influences into consideration and adjusts accordingly.

In real-time, Crunch analyzes cookies in browsers to determine the correct ads to serve, explains Eric Bosco, the brainchild behind the platform, and COO at ChoiceStream. "Other platforms tend to group users into static segments," he said.

The platform taps statistical data models that ChoiceStream's recommendation businesses unit uses to help build the foundation. Work on the project began in October.

A handful of companies such as Dish Networks have been testing the platform since January, ramping insertion orders from $15,000 to about $50,000 per month and beyond. Four companies will complete the beta at the end of June.

During the beta tests, one company experienced 3,100 new "high-lifetime" customers delivered to its shopping cart in less than 60 days. In another campaign, new registrants sent to a client via Crunch spent on average 35% more on their subsequent purchases. In a third trial, Crunch lowered a client's cost to engage new shoppers by 30%, and the platform also provided a 73% higher click through rate over client's prior baseline.

Crunch delivered new, qualified shoppers to Dish Networks' online shopping cart within a short period of time, according to a spokesperson for Dish Networks. "The average cost to engage these new prospects with our service was significantly lower than other tools," he said.
ChoiceStream supports companies from AT&T to Zappos.